Marry The Night
by heathersinclair1
Summary: Meagan Harper is a sixth year Slytherin who is horrendous at potions. She has failing marks. Severus takes an interest in Meagan after spotting nude pictures of himself drawn by the girl. When Severus agrees to tutor her, he does not realize just how awful Meagan is. Slowly she improves but Severus does not expect to fall for his new protege. POV changes every chapter.
1. Chapter 1

_**The cauldron started bubbling over as my potion was not brewed correctly.**_

 _ **Severus coughed, waving the smoke out of his face. "Meagan, you must pay a great deal of attention. Now, I shall brew the potion."**_

 _ **He coughed the smoke from his lungs deeply. "Allow me."**_

 _ **"Severus, are you alright?"**_

 _ **Severus coughed, nodding. "You need more practice, Meagan. Then hopefully, you will understand Potions."**_

 _ **He opened the door to let the smoke out. "You have improved on the written apparatus. We need to work on your brewing. Do not fret. You are learning from me."**_

 _ **I nodded. I watched as Severus began brewing the Draught of Peace himself.**_

 _ **My brewing was terrible and I was facing a failing grade in Potions. Severus had mercy on me, agreeing to tutor me.**_

 _ **It was my sixth year and I had been secretly meeting Severus in the dungeons for about a year now. It began when he found my drawings in class one day. He confiscated them of course. They were too obscene for him to show the class what I'd drawn. Basically him nude and his penis.**_

 _ **Severus read my mind and gave me veritaserum to better understand my feelings for him. I confessed that I liked him a lot but didn't love him yet. Our lessons began about six months later. Severus believed I would improve on my own but things took a turn for the worst.**_

 _ **Back to reality though.**_

 _ **He sighed as the potion turned silver. Satisfaction laced his features. Then he turned his gaze back to me. Severus did not seem enthusiastic at all with my bubbling cauldron and the thick black smoke I had caused. "You must master this potion to pass my class, Meagan. I can show you the procedure but you must brew it on your own eventually. Understand?"**_

 _ **I grimaced. I didn't like when he gave me that disappointed look. "I'm sorry."**_

 _ **Severus took in a deep breath and sighed loudly from his lungs. "I know you are intelligent enough to become proficient in potion making. You are not a dunderhead, Meagan."**_

 _ **"You're only saying that because of everything that's happened. Because of those pictures I drew!" I shouted.**_

 _ **Severus sighed again, deeper this time. He gave me a pleading look. "That is simply not true. I believe that you should know by now that I would never lie to you to hurt you or to give you false hope. I do not lie to others and I most certainly would not lie to you."**_

 _ **"I want to believe you." I stammered. "I'm just a piece of shit."**_

 _ **Severus sighed dramatically and came over to me. "You are very special to me, Meagan." He lifted my chin up to meet his eyes. "You have been very kind to an old soul who has never been loved in return."**_

 _ **I smiled.**_

 _ **Severus inhaled sharply and sighed heavily from his lungs. "I love you, Meagan."**_

 _ **He leaned down and planted a kiss on my lips. As we pulled apart Severus looked expectantly at me.**_

 _ **When I didn't respond to his words, Severus let out a deep sigh. "You do not have to say anything now, Meagan. I want you to realize how much you mean to me."**_

 _ **I was dumbfounded. I knew Severus cared about me. But love never crossed my mind.**_

 _ **"How could you love me?" I asked in shock. "I'm nothing."**_

 _ **Severus breathed in and sighed from his lungs. "You are everything to me."**_

 _ **"I-I have to go." I started for the door but Severus reached it before I could.**_

 _ **"Very well." He gave in. "We shall talk about this later, Miss Harper. I shall see you tomorrow evening after dinner."**_

 _ **I nodded, speechless as I hurried past him out the door.**_

 _ **Once alone, a loud, deep sigh echoed the walls as the breath left his lungs.**_

 _ **Perhaps another session of legilimency was needed.**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Meagan still not realize how much she meant to me. I could not place my finger on what was wrong. She thought she was useless.**_

 _ **I thought about her through the entire day before I saw her at dinner. She looked up at me a few times from her seat at the Slytherin table. There was also a rumor going around school that Draco Malfoy had taken an interest in her.**_

 _ **I sighed deeply as I looked down at her from the High Table again. I would ask her about the truth to the rumors.**_

 _ **Once I got finished with dinner, I marched down the center aisle and left the Great Hall.**_

 _ **Meagan watched me leave. I wondered if her performance tonight would exceed my expectations.**_

 _ **Meagan was about five minutes late to our lesson. "I'm sorry, sir." She shot me an apologetic look.**_

 _ **I sighed. "It is imperative that you arrive on time, Meagan. Please do not be late in the future."**_

 _ **"Are you feeling better, sir?"**_

 _ **I inhaled sharply and sighed deeply from my lungs. "I shall be as long as you brew well today."**_

 _ **"I'm so sorry about yesterday, Severus."**_

 _ **I gave her a sympathetic look. "I am fine, Meagan. Focus on the potion for today. I decided perhaps something more along the difficulty of your year."**_

 _ **She nodded.**_

 _ **"The Sleeping Draught. Perhaps you shall perform this potion successfully." I told her. I made it very simple for her. The ingredients were are laid out.**_

 _ **Meagan looked at me nervously. "More difficult?"**_

 _ **I sighed deeply. "You should do well. I shall continue teaching you everyday until you can successfully brew any potion."**_

 _ **The girl stood in silence until I sighed again loudly. "I shall be right over there if you should need anything."**_

 _ **Meagan nodded.**_

 _ **I sighed and strode to my desk. For about an hour everything seemed fine and I was marking parchment until a strange smell invaded my nostrils. I knew the potion was not supposed to smell this way.**_

 _ **There was no smoke, not yet. I breathed in deeply to see if I could pinpoint the source of the smell. Perhaps the smell was the 4 sprigs of Lavender, 6 measures of Standard Ingredient, 2 blobs of Flobberworm Mucus, or 4 Valerian sprigs?**_

 _ **I began coughing severely as I breathed in deeply. My lungs hurt. I shot up from my desk to see where she could have gone wrong this time. I noticed a bluish-green haze over the boiling cauldron and I knew there was something wrong.**_

 _ **The haze spread over the entire classroom as I made my way over to scourgify the cauldron quickly. Meagan looked utterly terrified. Was she terrified of me?**_

 _ **I coughed deeply and loudly to clear my lungs of the engulfing blue smoke. I raised my wand and screamed hoarsely at the top of my lungs. "Scourgify!"**_

 _ **I fought not to be angry with her. She should know what she is doing. I am teaching her everything I know.**_

 _ **Meagan rushed over to me, clapping my back as I coughed harshly. The sound was blaring as it resonated off the walls. The intense coughing fit shook my tall frame. Finally, I coughed the last remnants of the smoke from my lungs. I shot her a dark glare as she continued looking at me in worry.**_

 _ **"Miss Harper, what did you put in that cauldron?" I sneered, towering over her.**_

 _ **She flinched horribly away from me, causing me to let out a deep sigh from my lungs. "Meagan, show me." I spoke in a softer tone.**_

 _ **Meagan remained silent. I exhaled, going to check on anything that may have fallen into the cauldron accidentally while she was brewing. I spotted moonseed and a few other poisonous items that could have made the gas I saw emitting from the cauldron.**_

 _ **"I'm sorry, sir. I'm just no good at your class." Meagan replied.**_

 _ **I coughed deeply, clearing my lungs deafeningly. Then I took a deep breath into my lungs and sighed it out slowly from my lungs. "You will improve, Meagan. Next time, have these other ingredients cleared away. It will only confuse you further."**_

 _ **Tears welled up in her eyes.**_

 _ **I sighed loudly. Here we go again. "I apologize if I have been too harsh, Meagan but I promise you will get better."**_

 _ **I concentrated and entered her mind almost without effort. She had no training in occlumency, although I was willing to tutor her in this as well. Her thoughts became clear to me within moments of invading her mind. Does Severus know I love him? Maybe I should tell him.**_

 _ **The breath froze in my lungs and I took a moment to recompose myself. I coughed, clearing my lungs before I spoke gently to Meagan again. "Perhaps you just need to rest and reflect on everything you have going on at the moment."**_

 _ **I sighed. "If you are overwhelmed, this may be why you are making mistakes. I shall make the potion myself to show, if anything you may have missed."**_

 _ **Meagan seemed to calm down at my more kindly tone. She watched as I brewed the potion myself and smiled.**_

 _ **I sighed loudly from my lungs. "Now you shall try another tomorrow. We shall continue until you progress."**_

 _ **"I love you, Severus." She confessed.**_

 _ **"I wondered when you would mention that again." I said with a sigh. "I also wondered if you would mention Mr. Malfoy."**_

 _ **Meagan's face turned red. I smirked.**_

 _ **"Whatever you heard isn't true." She began. "He's tried to ask me to Hogsmeade, but I refused-"**_

 _ **I cut her off. "I supposed you would refuse. Especially after what I told you."**_

 _ **Meagan nodded. "Yes."**_

 _ **I sighed. "Come here."**_

 _ **She sauntered over to me shyly.**_

 _ **I closed the gap between us and kissed Meagan passionately.**_

 _ **She pulled away a little sooner than I anticipated.**_

 _ **I turned away from her as a sudden, powerful coughing fit exploded in my lungs. My tall frame bounced as I coughed deeply and earsplittingly loudly. Meagan watched me with concern, clapping my back to soothe the spasms within my lungs. The screeching of air being forced in and out of my lungs mirrored back from the walls around us. I gasped sharply, the vociferous whistling of the breath filling my lungs again.**_

 _ **I coughed a few more times before my lungs eventually alleviated from the jarring and boisterous coughing storm.**_

 _ **Meagan massaged my back muscles. "Are you ok, Severus?"**_

 _ **I coughed deeply, clearing my lungs. "Yes."**_

 _ **"If you don't want to see Madame Pomfrey, I know some exercises to help clear your lungs."**_

 _ **I sighed. "I appreciate this. However, I have some clear lung potion."**_

 _ **Meagan placed her palms on my back where my lungs were. "Inhale and hold your breath."**_

 _ **I sighed again but obeyed. I inhaled quickly into my lungs and held the air in them.**_

 _ **"Exhale, gasp and cough."**_

 _ **I sighed immediately from my lungs. Then I gasped very deeply and piercingly and coughed loudly and deeply to clear more debris from my lungs.**_

 _ **"Better?"**_

 _ **"Much." I sighed crashingly from my lungs, feeling relieved. It was as if a weight was released from my chest.**_

 _ **Meagan leaned over and gave me a peck on the lips. "I'll see you again tomorrow, Severus."**_

 _ **I smirked. "Very well. Good evening."**_

 _ **She smiled and blew a kiss. Then she left me alone in the classroom.**_

 _ **I brought my fist to my lips and coughed deeply. My lungs felt much lighter now and I hoped the potion I was about to brew helped clear further bacteria or infection from them as a result of the smoke, effluvium, or fumes I breathed into my lungs earlier.**_

 _ **I sighed deeply, thinking of Meagan. She was very kind to me. I am very lucky to have her in my life now.**_


End file.
